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Review: 'Happy Endings' - 'Spooky Endings': You're a man, baby!

The gang (other than Brad) gets dressed up for Halloween fun

By Alan Sepinwall Wednesday, Oct 26, 2011 10:00 PM

<p>Zachary Knighton and Elisha Cuthbert dress up for Halloween on "Happy Endings."</p>

Zachary Knighton and Elisha Cuthbert dress up for Halloween on "Happy Endings."

Credit: ABC

Earlier today, I interviewed "Happy Endings" producers David Caspe and Jonathan Groff about the creative evolution of the show, and talked a bit about tonight's very funny Halloween episode (and, specifically, my love of Max and Penny's costume). A few thoughts on the episode coming up just as soon as I go to my weird gay turkey party...

"Spooky Endings" was a very strong episode overall, even though, as alluded to in the interview, "Arrested Development" beat them to the "mistaken for a transgendered person" punch with the Alex story, and even though I didn't entirely buy Brad and Jane's role reversal on the suburbs. Elisha Cuthbert was really game in the drag queen story, the episode provided lots of great wordplay like Max and Brad's holiday comparisons ("Halloween is the Arbor Day of urinating!") and Max's love interesting being dressed as ZZ Top Gun, and I laughed every damn time I watched Max try to manipulate things with the toy baby arms.

What did everybody else think? Did they do Halloween right, or did they do it right? 

Alan-sepinwall-sm
Alan Sepinwall
Sr. Editor, What's Alan Watching
Alan Sepinwall has been reviewing television since the mid-'90s, first for Tony Soprano's hometown paper, The Star-Ledger, and now for HitFix. His new book, "The Revolution Was Televised," about the last 15 years of TV drama, is for sale at Amazon. He can be reached at sepinwall@hitfix.com
Related Searches: Happy Endings, Zachary Knighton, Elisha Cuthbert, Eliza Coupe, Damon Wayans Jr., Casey Wilson, Adam Pally

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  • Default-avatar

    Marco

    It was okay. Maybe it's from watching multiple Halloween episodes this week, but I wasn't all that impressed. Everything really felt like it was done before, and I totally could have done without the "weirdness of the suburbs" plot for Brad and Jane (especially after watching "Suburgatory"). And the couple's costume was okay, but it reminded me of Dan and Jackie on "Roseanne" (a much better execution).

    Honestly, had there not been a Halloween theme, I probably would have liked the episode more, as everyone was game. Just the limitations of the plot device to provide anything really new.

    October 26, 2011 at 10:08PM EST Reply to Comment
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    Jon

    Awesome episode. This is the best non nbc network comedy

    October 26, 2011 at 10:21PM EST Reply to Comment
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    Jeff

    For what it's worth I enjoyed Brad and Jane's plot the most in this episode. The non-cop being a convenience stor employee made me laugh out loud.

    October 26, 2011 at 10:21PM EST Reply to Comment
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    Sully

    I have to agree with Alan on this one. Watching Max manipulate the baby arms (especially when he was trying to punch Abe Lincoln) cracked me up every time. I also loved the "we're not piling on?" bit at the beginning.

    This show has only gotten better since it started and I hope it continues that streak.

    October 26, 2011 at 10:22PM EST Reply to Comment
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    Aaron

    Having watched this earlier on Yahoo, I think it was my favorite episode they've ever done, and my 2nd-fav comedy ep of the year overall (behind Community's "Chaos"). An instant classic in my book, and it goes up with "Slutty Pumpkin" as my go-to Halloween comedy episodes

    October 26, 2011 at 10:24PM EST Reply to Comment
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    dmstorm22

    I was sure the cop and the salesboy were just kidding and just didn't want to talk to Brad and Jane, and in my mind that could've been funny (like the classic Chappelle stand-up bit about how women get offended if you think they are slutty when they dress up provacative, but people would get mad if you just dressed up like a cop). Anyway, what they did worked fine.

    This is random, and I'm sure I'm just forgetting something, but I've watched every Arrested Development episode at least 20 times, and I can't off the top of my head think of what the "mistaken for a transgendered" is. Actually, literally while I was writing that, I remembered a plot where Meabe told Steve Holt her mom was a dude. I'm guessing that is it, but that is a bit different. In the AD one the person himself didn't think Lindsay was a man until Meabe told Steve, and of course made Lindsay where the "shemale" shirt.

    October 26, 2011 at 10:35PM EST Reply to Comment
    • Midnight_run_mca255950_talkback_profile

      sepinwall That's the one. Lindsay also had a sore throat like Alex, which helped sell the lie.

      October 27, 2011 at 4:31AM EST
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    S

    The only sitcom Halloween episode to top this is Season 1 Community's. This episode has set the bar very high for tomorrow night's P&R and Community Halloween episodes.

    October 26, 2011 at 10:59PM EST Reply to Comment
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    M

    Loved "The Doors" and Jane's comment about the schools being good after the "This isn't over" play on words.

    But Alex totally would have won the drag contest if she'd busted out the hula hoop dance. Missed opportunity there for sure.

    October 26, 2011 at 11:28PM EST Reply to Comment
    • Targaryen-sigil_talkback_profile

      SunIsBlue Good call! Can't believe they didn't add the hula hoop dance in there. Damn it.

      October 27, 2011 at 10:09AM EST
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    troopermsu

    Liked it enough that I'm putting the show into my regular rotation. They are starting to really hit stride. The writers are giving the very good cast good material. Wayans, whom I thought before was a weak spot, is markedly better.

    October 27, 2011 at 12:37AM EST Reply to Comment
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    Owen

    If Alex had dyed her hair, she would have made a great Dr. Girlfriend.

    October 27, 2011 at 1:00AM EST Reply to Comment
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    bforte

    Amazing episode. The "Henry thinks Alex is a dude" thing was hilarious, especially when he got so blunt about it ("I can't wait to see your..."). Of course, I applaud any use of David Walton—loved him on Perfect Couples and looking forward to seeing him on Bent.

    October 27, 2011 at 9:57AM EST Reply to Comment
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    Heisenberg

    Thought it was hysterical. The first 15 minutes were as good as any sitcom this year outside of Community's "Remedial Chaos Theory." While the back half wasn't quite as funny, it paid off nicely.

    Not only my favorite Happy Endings to date, but I think this is the moment when Happy Endings officially became a good series - not the awful show it was last year and not the work in progress it's been so far this season.

    The only thing disconcerting about this notion is that if you would have told me in May - and especially if you would have looked at each show's first season - that Happy Endings would have ever become better than HIMYM, I would have thought you were crazy. Fortunately, as a result of last night's episode, Happy Endings trumping HIMYM is equally due to Happy Endings' ascension as HIMYM's downfall.

    October 27, 2011 at 10:49AM EST Reply to Comment
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      chinny I love HIMYM as much as the next guy, but Happy Endings has a big advantage of having 2 very funny female characters. I feel that Robin and Lily are very hit or miss on HIMYM whereas Jane and Penny bring the funny hard to the hoop.

      Alex is more like Lily and Robin, sometimes she'll deliver a good line, but you're not expecting much from her.

      October 27, 2011 at 11:16AM EST
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    Maureen

    Very funny episode, Max and his use of the baby arms in conversation had me laughing out loud.

    October 27, 2011 at 12:58PM EST Reply to Comment
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    Rinaldo

    I found this episode hysterical, surprising, delightful start to finish. It's up there with last week's episode as well as "Of Mice and Jazz-Kwon Do" and "Dave of the Dead" from last spring's season, which is to say, about as good as a sitcom can get.

    I personally don't deduct any points for doing a joke that's been done before, as long as it's done well and still tickles me. As the producers said in that interview, there have been so many episodes of so many shows by now, we're not going to find an absolutely unprecedented idea very often. But Happy Endings has always killed it in the execution. I love this series.

    October 27, 2011 at 4:10PM EST Reply to Comment
  • Default-avatar

    garyc

    funny episode. Penny/Max's costume was hilarious.

    October 29, 2011 at 10:45PM EST Reply to Comment

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